


Sometimes There Are Rainbows After the Storm

by Office



Series: Black, White, and Grey. [4]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Destiel - Freeform, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Humor, Food, Humor, Love, Multi, New Beginnings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-02
Updated: 2016-03-02
Packaged: 2018-05-24 08:00:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,442
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6147015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Office/pseuds/Office
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sam has returned from his hunting trip with JJ in tote. He expected to have some explaining to do but he is shocked to find Castiel is alive and kicking. Will Sam be able to forgive Dean for making a deal with an Angel or will Sam finally walk out on his brother?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks everyone for sticking around! This is the last part in my series. I had a lot of fun writing this, but it's time to see it come to an end as all things should. Thanks again for reading!

Sam brooded in his room alone. He didn’t want to talk to anyone. How could Dean take such a big risk? Nothing was ever as good as it seemed, especially if you were a Winchester and now Dean was back to his old ways. Sam didn’t know if he should be downstairs kicking Dean’s ass or bracing for the worst. He should have known something was up, but he trusted his brother. He trusted him not to make decisions like this, ones that could literally bring hell down on them or even heaven or both. Now he’s made a deal with an angel. Sam couldn’t stand to listen to Dean explain anymore. He felt extremely guilty and extremely mad at the same time. He brought JJ home, he brought JJ into this and with this level of uncertainty he wasn’t sure if it was even safe for her to be around. Sam pulled at his hair as he sat on his bed. There was no way to send Cas back, not that he wanted to, but they were in for it now. Sam was sure of it.

Sam looked up when there was a light knock at the door. He was in no mood to speak to anyone, but got up and unlocked the door anyways. Half expecting Dean or Cas, Sam was surprised to see that it was JJ. She could tell his was pissed, but she ignored his anger with her icy eyes, which could freeze hell.

“Can I come in?” JJ asked, leaning with her arms folded on the frame of the door.

“JJ, this really isn’t a good time.” Sam tried to push her away, but she wasn’t the type to be easily deterred.

“So you begged me to come here, now you’re fighting with your brother and don’t want me around? Maybe I should leave.” Her threat was empty, but the bait was taken.

“No, no. I’m sorry.” Sam sighed. “JJ trust me, that’s the last thing I want.” He stared into her deep brown eyes, searching for comfort. JJ nodded, now it was her turn to be nosy.

“So what’s the deal with your brother and the guy downstairs?”

Sam looked up and shook his head. “It’s a very long story.”

“Come on, I’ve got time.” She pushed, but only because she wanted him to talk it out. Holding it in would only make him madder.

Sam sighed. Where should he begin? Should he start by telling her that his mother was killed by a yellow eyed demon when he was a baby? Or should he start with Jess and the seriously long road he and his brother had been on to find and kill the demon that ruined his family. Should he explain to her every time he saved the world and everything he screwed it up. That he had been locked in a cage with the devil, lived without a soul, and died more times than he could count. Where does Sam Winchester start when explaining his life? That was a frustrating question that Sam never got an answer for, but his life was one set back after another. Sam almost broke down. Just one time, just one time he would like the chance to not be Sam Winchester, not to have a brother who is just as screwed up as he is, to have a normal family. Something stable, something he could actually bring a girl home to. He was so lost in his thoughts that he nearly forgot JJ was right there, holding him. His eyes were red and he looked to her expecting an icy glare or a funny taught, but there were only the eyes of a person who had lost just as much as he had. The eyes of a soul that was beaten and broken, but alive and strong with the scares and notches from life’s hard knocks. JJ was like him too, she had nothing. Nowhere to go, a future uncertain. He embraced her.

“JJ I just-”

“Shhhhh.” JJ held him. “Say no more, say no more.” JJ held Sam tight, as if he would float away if she let go. Those brown eyes matched hers, reminding her of each and everything she had lost and would never get back. It reminded her of a home she could never return to, a mother she could never hug again, a proud father whose only memory was a photograph, a family that was long gone; but Sam was lucky he had a family. Maybe not the perfect brother he had asked for, but a living breathing life line to the life stolen from him. She had no idea what Sam had been through, but it would kill her to see two brothers who’ve been through so much split up. If she could have one wish for Sam, it would be that he could heal the bound that was broken between him and his brother, because in life you only get a few chances to make things right before they’re gone.

* * *

For an entire week Sam decided to stay at a nearby motel. It pained Dean knowing his brother was so pissed at him and it was causing him more stress than he could handle. Dean trusted Magnus, but Sam didn’t. Dean wanted Sam to meet him so they could talk, but what difference would that make. It wasn’t like that hadn’t been lied to by angels before and who knew this might come back and bite him in the butt. Dean skipped another meal and his bouts of worry were starting to affect Cas.

“Dean?” Castiel appeared at the door frame. He had been giving Dean his space during the day, so Dean could do what he did best when he was frustrated.

Dean looked up with tired eyes. He hated what this was doing to Cas. “Hey Cas.”

“Hello Dean.” Castiel used a familiar greeting which caused a spike of sentiment to flash across Dean’s face. He crossed the room to the cabinet and pulled out a box of cereal and two bowls. Dean watched, distracted by Castiel’s movements. His emotions were a lot calmer than his own in comparison. Castiel still suffered with terrible bouts of PTSD, but compared to Dean’s stress level at the moment it was much calmer. Castiel grabbed two spoons and a carton of milk from the fridge. He sat the items on the table.

“Cas, I’m not really hungry.”

“You need to eat Dean.” Castiel insisted and he was right, but Dean was not in the mood.

Castiel plopped down next to Dean, inching as close as he could to him. He felt the safest when he was next to Dean and Dean could sense it. “Here.” Castiel poured the last of the milk in each of their bowls. “Eat.”

Dean stared into tired blue eyes, both had been through hell this past week. He let a smile escape as he slowly took it bite by bite. Sam would could around in time.

* * *

JJ stretched her feet on the lumpy, cigarette burned mattress of the motel they were staying at. It was a dump, nothing like the bunker, but it would do for the time being. She waited patiently for Sam to return with lunch as she stared at the chipped ceiling paint above her. There was a thud at the door. JJ turned her eyes sharply, the knob jiggled and turned. Sam walked through the door with their lunch. He smiled as he put the food on the wobbly table that was close to collapsing at any moment. JJ stared at Sam, he was sure he could tell what exactly was on her mind, but he choose not to say anything. Sam took out the wrapped sandwiches and chips and placed them on the table, going through the motions and putting on the best face. He looked up and smiled at JJ, but who was he trying to fool. She could see right through him.

“Sam.”

“JJ, let’s just eat okay.” Sam inserted a little authority in his voice, he really didn’t want to argue over lunch.

JJ glared at him, but tossed her legs over the bed. “Fine.” She got up and pulled out a chair and sat down at the table, as soon as she placed her elbows on the table it collapsed. They both stared at the defeated table in displeasure as they could relate to its plight. It was clear that the owner needed to come and fix the table, but instead he allowed the damage to persist until it met its tragic end. Was this going to be the same fate for Sam, if he never acknowledged and fixes what’s broken? He could just walk away, like the problem would fix itself, but when he returns it would still be there, staring him in the face, until one day everything just falls apart like the table before them.

Sam frowned in defeat, he was ready for JJ to say something, but she just stayed silent. She didn’t need to utter a thing. They both knew what Sam needed to do, but it was Sam who was unsure if he were ready to face his brother or not. Sam sighed and picked up the food off the floor. He was lucky it was packaged.

“Wanna move to the bed?” Sam looked at JJ.

“Sure.” JJ she let him off easy, because she could tell he was trying. There was nothing she could say that he wasn’t already arguing over in his mind. “Grilled tofu? Man where do you find this stuff?” JJ tore into her sandwich.

Sam let a tiny smile escape. “Not your thing?”

“Nah.” She shook her head. “But it’s good.”

Sam nodded. “Dean would kick me if I brought him home something like this.”

“What? He’s not into tofu?”

“Oh no.” Sam laughed for real this time, drawing up the muscles that formed his smile on his face. “He’s a burger and beer kind of a person. He’d eat pie every day of his life if he could.”

“Sounds like my kind of a guy.” Their brown eyes met and there was static in the air. It was the calm before the storm. “Sam.”

“JJ.” Sam frowned again. “Please.”

“Sam, I’m not going to wait all my life for you to realized that you’ve got something special and let you walk away from it.”

“JJ, you don’t know. You don’t know what I’ve been through.”

“You’re right, but is it worth the relationship of your only brother?”

Sam turned his head as he tossed the sandwich to the bed. They were brothers and they should stick together through thick and thin, but it was that same relationship that got them into all this trouble to begin with. It was a vicious cycle, with no end, no matter how many peaceful moments they had in between.

“You know.” JJ stared into Sam’s eyes. “Rumor has it two brothers banded together against the forces of God and literately saved the world from being consumed by evil. They said they did it, not once, but many times. Now I don’t know what kind of deal you gotta make to land that shitty job and I don’t care. If you said you’ve been through hell and back and you’ve still got your brother by your side that’s a blessing. No road is paved with flowers and no sea is always rocky, but if you can walk through the valley of death and back to the land of the living with someone who loves and cares for you, I’d count that as a blessing.” Sam turned and furrowed his brow. “Now I think you’re cursed and hey maybe I am too, but I don’t care who’s soul I’ve got to sell if it means I can walk this hell path with my brother.”

Sam met her icy brown eyes in the dimness of the motel room. She did not know his whole story and honestly if he told her everything he didn’t think she would change her mind an inch. Sam had something she did not, Sam had family and their relationship wasn’t perfect, far from it, but it was something. Something Sam could tough, talk it, rely on, and even if they made bad deals over time, they always found a way to fix it. It was the Winchester way, they were the world savers, it was their job whether they wanted it or not.

Sam sighed and slumped his head down. JJ reached over and ruffled his hair. He looked up.

“You ready to go home?” She said with eyes filled with warmth.

He smiled and sighed in defeat. “Yeah.” JJ smiled and leaned in and kissed him on the check.

“That’s my boy.”

Just three little words, let Sam know her feelings. He wasn’t going to let Dean off so easily but he had more things to be grateful for at the moment than to not. He had Castiel back, now JJ, his little hunter family was growing and he didn’t know how long this mini paradise would last, but he would try to enjoy it while it last. Tomorrow would come, but it wasn’t here yet so he chose to take it day by day instead.


	2. Chapter 2

Dean let Sam have his space for the next few weeks. He could tell Sam needed it. He was happy that he moved back in, but they weren’t fine, not yet, only time would tell where they stood. In the meantime Dean had Cas and that’s all that mattered to him. He paid the price and he would do it all over again, even if Sam were there to stop him, because he needed Cas. He needed Cas more than he admitted to Sam, even more than he admitted to Castiel himself. Dean enjoyed every minute his spent with his angel and Castiel enjoyed the same. Dean could retire right now if it meant that he would spend his last days wrapped in the warm embrace of his friend.

He rolled over in bed and looked at his pin-up girl calendar on the wall. It was the last day of summer and he felt like he hadn’t done anything summery all summer. He glanced at his phone and read a quick text from Sam. He and JJ were back from their hunt. He checked the weather, it was hot and perfect for a cookout. The idea of 100% American beef grilling over charcoal made his mouth water. That’s when he decided that was what he was going to do. He texted Sam and told him, dinner was on him. Dean was going to spend his last day of summer right, the Winchester way with burgers and beer.

Dean toted Castiel along with him to the store, which was about thirty minutes away. He opted for the windows down over the icy blast of the AC and neither seemed to mind. Castiel liked long car rides with Dean. He loved siting in the Impala and listening to Dean’s music. He felt like this was a place he earned, a place very few got to be, and now it was his place. Dean pulled off the highway and down the road to the Megamart. He turned the engine off and stared at Castiel, who stared back with his longing blue eyes. Yes, to Dean Winchester this was paradise.

“You ready?” Dean asked. Castiel nodded. “Alright.” Dean grabbed a cart from the island and rolled it into the store. It wasn’t as crowded as the weekend, because it was a Wednesday, but there were still a fair amount of people around. They walked through the sliding doors down the endless aisles to the meat section. “Going to do some grilling tonight!” Dean turned around and flashed one of his famous smiles.

Castiel kind of understood what Dean was talking about, he could feel the excitement coursing through his veins. They were connected now, they could tell how each of them was feeling at any moment and it was nice to bask in Dean’s positive emotions. Castiel stayed close, watching the people around them. They got weird glances when Dean got too close or wrapped his arms around Cas, but Dean didn’t seem to care. Castiel watched the attention Dean put into looking at every pound of fresh ground beef. He didn’t bother with the frozen patties that Castiel had seen before, he wanted the best. After the meat was weighed and packaged, they headed off down the aisles for chips and other types of goodies.

“What’s the occasion?” Castiel watched Dean toss a few bags of kettle chips in the cart.

Dean shrugged. “It’s summer man, do we need a reason?” Dean joked and smiled.

Cas nodded, pretending that he understood. He followed closely, the rules about personal space long forgotten. He didn’t see anything he liked except when they got to the canned vegetable aisle. He stopped as Dean continued. When Dean finally noticed he had left his angel behind he quickly tosses his jar of pickles in his car and doubled back.

“See something that you like?” Dean looked at his friend.

Castiel nodded and picked up a can of fried onion toppers. He loved these on his burgers, and his smile was all Dean needed to take the can and toss it in the cart. Castiel looked at him, but Dean only smiled.

“There you go buddy.” They could kiss right now, but Dean played it cool.

With all the things they’d been through it amazed Dean that he could smile. It amazed Dean that he was standing here, in this store with Castiel after one hell of a year. He smiled and checked his phone and smirked at the little k Sam sent him. They were talking now, but Sam mostly focused on working on cases. It was his way of coming to terms with what was going on. Eventually he would need to let Sam know how he really felt about Cas, but that was for another time. Today was not going to be an argument day, today they were going to kick back and enjoy the last beautiful day summer.

* * *

JJ and Castiel watched Sam and Dean argue over who would light the grill. They fought a lot but it was just over flow from a decomposing dam that was ready to break. It was funny at times and sometimes just plan sad, but this was their way. JJ gave up watching the brothers fight and stormed over and took the lighter from Dean, she lite the fire and walked away to finish her beer. All three of the men just stared at her, but she was finished with her move and no one dared step in to challenge her. Sam only smiled, which caused Dean to smile and lighten up as well. She was feisty, the perfect match for the trio.

“So you’re an angel?” JJ stared at Castiel in disbelief. She wasn’t too terrible religious, but it was still hard for her to believe an angel of the lord was a thirty-nine year old awkward white male. She always thought they would be more badass.

“I was.” Castiel turned and looked at her.

“Ain’t that some shit.” She smiled as she drew another sip from her beer.

Castiel nodded. “It is.”

She busted into laughter which drew the attention of Sam. Everyday she was learning something new about the world savers she decided to hook up with. Some of the things she could not believe, others seemed as familiar to her as the back roads of her old neighborhood. She liked it here, it was as close as she was ever going to get to a real family and she thought deep down her family would be proud.

Sam crossed the yard and wrapped his arms around JJ. He hugged her tight and kissed her on the cheek. Castiel watched their warm embrace from his lawn chair and stood and walked over to Dean.

“Hey!” Dean caught Cas out of the corner of his eye. “Looking good right?”

The smell was enticing. “Mmm.” He smiled.

Dean finished his beer and cracked open another. He offered one to Cas who accepted it. “Thank you Dean.”

Their eyes meet. Dean could see his whole life ahead of him and for the first time in a very long time he saw hope. A life he long since thought was reserved for other people, before him. “You’re welcome buddy.” And stole a kiss on his lover’s cheek.

End.


End file.
